How can you build sessions trusting rolls entirely?

question
#1

Hey,

So I’m on my second read through of C&S because I feel it needs a few reads before I have the lore ingrained. Also it allowed me to trial run some combat alone. But next to that I’ve been running into some GM challenges.

It seems like we could do entirely roll based prompting to inspire on the spot story creation between gm and player. I would love this! But can’t seem to get my head around how this can be done? Any advice on how to get the ball rolling?

I’d love live playthroughs, roll-table use tips, example scenarios, etc to get the ball rolling.

Creating a monster on the spot also seems a little tough. The roll table is clear, but I have no idea on the maths/level i am building for monsters DEF, ATK and phases. How do I ensure its a fun challenge and not a steamroll or a breeze?

Any advice, links or experiences worth sharing are appreciated!

Cheers,
Rhys

#2

Personally, rolling to create the session is great when you do it in advance and can then make it work; Trust the Dice. This is to minimize the amount of time the players are left “on hold” while I figure something out and how it fits.

If something new happens that may require a random roll, I’ll roll it then and if I can’t make it run in less than a minute, I just call for a drink break and go from there. YES/NO rolls can also help when unsure of a situation.

#3

Yeah but I’m curious how I’m supposed to roll based on the starting area prompts to decide anything? They aren’t really quest prompts? If they were you could be motivated towards travel and do hexrolls between areas. Or have I misunderstood something?

#4

I’m in the same boat here. I love what C&S is bringing to the hobby, but it seems a little confusing. I’m re-reading through the free copy myself. Like yourself I would love to see more in-depth content on this system with tips and examples.

#5

I don’t believe there are initial prompts on what to do, mainly on what may be out there in Hexes and in Mapless Dungeons. Review the Hometown pages in the main player’s section and in the GM section for specific ideas of story prompts the players may be interested in and grow from there with Hex Rolls. You won’t do EVERYTHING from the dice, as something has to get the players moving.

Regarding creating monsters on the spot and having it be properly math’d out and “fair” is not something that this system really talks about. You’ll have to get used to your own party’s abilities and specialties to find out what can work for them. You can have characters with the same amount of Hero Points and one of them can be destroyed in combat while the other can wreck in combat, and that is perfectly fine.

My suggestion for monster creation is that if you want one dangerous monster of your own cruel design, you should give them at least 2 Phases, with one of those on PHASE 4. Sprinkle in additional Tactics as necessary (Tactics are per phase, so monster with 3 tactics uses 3 of them per phase). If you want dangerous but easily defeated enemies, give them 1HP and ATK/DEF 3 with 1-3 Basic attrition.

#6

Thanks! Ah so I probably just need to invent an initial group of quests in their hometown that gets them onto the hexmap. Or are we looking to create mapless dungeons for each location?

#7

The hexes are meant to be rolled on to shake things up, or if you just need an encounter. If there is a conflict with the current arc of the story, you can choose to not roll. There is NOTHING and I mean NOTHING that should be conceived as “the right way to play”.
Try to play the game RAW, but the pace of the game and the story is yours to control, however you want.
You put the master in Game Master!

As others have said, the monsters’ threat level is based on action economy (phases and tactics) and dmg thresholds (attrition type). Try yourself on the bone gauntlet if you want a feel for tough combat - in the end of the free rulesheet.
Don’t worry too much about getting everything right the first time. The combat is quite intuitive. I personally found my feet very fast and feel competent making monsters to suit my players level.
Never underestimate the players - and action economy is key.

Good luck - have fun!

#8

I also struggled with this, as a GM i wanted every nook and cranny of the story ready ahead of time. But when I ran my session of C&S I was upfront and told everyone that the dice are moving this game forward so not even i know whats going to happen.

To exercise the improv muscles required to feel confident in this i would suggest doing some solo sessions. Start with a hometown scenario and move into a hex roll. See how far you can stretch those two sentence prompts and how the story can unfold. Use alot of yes or no d6 rolls to inform how the situation progresses. Its way easier figuring this stuff out while your alone, but the practice will definitely help at the table.

As a side note, I printed out the north holds map and im using it to track player progress across the hexes and on that same map in a different area my solo character is traversing his own story. So maybe one day they will cross paths or explore the same region, in which case i already have some idea of what has happened there previously.

#9

Possible idea - They may go through the same area but at different time lines. The deeds of the group influence your solo or the other way around. The time can be separated by years or just months.

#10

Yeah I had thought of that, one of my favorite things about C&S is the living world. So my solo character or group leaving their mark is very cool.